The Most Classic of All Canadian Experiences

There are many things Canada is known for - mounties, moose, igloos (yes, I jest), etc. - but this weekend, I experienced the ultimate of Canadian activities. I was invited to spend the night with my friend at her house in the Durham Region (sort of like our "county" in Houston) about 40 minutes outside of Toronto. We had planned to have her boyfriend grill his fabulous steaks, drink some wine, watch "Sex and the City" and cause general debauchery. We also watched her dog eat corn straight from the cob. Normally I would say "only in Texas", but in this case, it's "only in Durham".

The next morning, her son had hockey practice, so after having homemade pancakes with Nutella (thanks Rob!), we bundled up and headed to the arena. When we pulled up, there were about 1,000 SUVs in the parking lot with both parents and kids hauling their 200 lb bags of hockey gear and sticks in and out of the arena. When we walked in, scores of people were rushing around and the temperature was about 5C. There were 4 pads of ice in total. On one side, the figure skating pad filled with - no kidding - 3 year olds who appeared to be barely walking but with these itty-bitty tiny skates glued to their feet and helmets on their head. They were holding onto orange pylons and scooting slowly around the rink. Seriously, I think Canadian children come out of the womb with skates on their feet. There's really no other explanation.

On the opposite side of the building were the hockey ice pads. These tiny little boys looked just like the pros but were all of 5 or 6. It felt like the entire town was at the arena that morning and I was told that the same scenario was happening all over the GTA that day, like every Saturday. Once hockey begins in September, practice and games are a weekly event that occur until April of the following year. Holy crap -- that's a lot of weekends spent bundled up in North Face drinking Timmy Ho's. Not to mention, it's not exactly cheap for your kid to play hockey, averaging $450 just to join the team and not including equipment, travel, etc. Wow.

While we were waiting for my friend's son to change into his gear, we scurried over to the ubiquitous Tim Horton's to get a coffee - the MOST Canadian of all Canadian institutions. There must be more Tim Horton's coffee consumed per capita in Canada than all the Starbucks in the universe combined. There is literally not an hour that goes by without seeing someone holding a Tim Horton's cup in hand. I'm convinced they spike their coffee with something to make you come back for more (crack?)

By the way, did I mention the very good looking dads at the arena? Definitely the place to spot hot guys. But I digress. Once we got back to the arena, practice was starting so in we went. It was, of course, even colder inside and I had stupidly only brought my light scarf and coat. So there I sat - in Whitby, Ontario on a saturday morning, Tim Horton's in hand, watching little boys and girls play hockey and ice skate at the local ice rink. It was one of my most memorable Canadian experiences.

TIFF-Tastic Film Reviews, By the Numbers

If you've read my previous posts on the Toronto International Film Festival, you'll see that, unfortunately, much blood, sweat and tears go into securing tickets to the festival. I was lucky enough to be able to take 3 days of vacation to attend this year's festival and saw a total of 14 films. There are several package options, including 25, 30 and 50 tickets, which I can hardly imagine. It's recommended that you get to your films at least 45 minutes early because the lines get really long. While waiting for "Ashes of Time", the official TIFF survey people came by to get stats on some of us in line. I overheard the two people in front of me say that they had purchased the 50 film package. Holy snow, Batman! One couple even flew in from California for the event - they stay in T.O. for 14 days seeing all 50 movies. The man directly in front of me was from Whitby, Ontario - a Toronto 'burb - and he pays to spend 11 nights in T.O. and sees 55 movies! I basically knelt down before them in awe.

What this means for those of us who don't have the bum cartilage to make it throughthis heroic feat is that you literally start your first film around 9am and see movies literally all day through to the "Midnight Madness" film that starts at 11:59pm. Including trasnit time, you likely don't get home until around 3am and start all over again the next day. By the numbers, that's no fewer than 5 films a day for 10 days straight. *That*, my fair readers, is dedication. I asked if they had any recollection of the films they'd seen at the end of the 14 days and they shared with me that they write notes after each film and also include a rating from their very own little rating system. In keeping with that spirit, here are my reviews for the amazing (and not so amazing) films I saw at TIFF08.

Rating System:
***** - Excellent/Do not miss
**** - Great/Highly recommended
*** - Good/See it at a matinee
** - Fair/ Rent the DVD
* - Bad/Don't waste your time or $

1. Dean Spanley - with Peter O'Toole ***
2. $5 a Day - with Christopher Walken ****
3. Wendy and Lucy - with Michelle Williams *
4. Ashes of Time Redux - a Wong Kar Wai film ***
5. Birdsong * - DO NOT SEE THIS FILM! You will feel regret for the rest of the live long day.
6. Is There Anybody There - with Michael Caine ****
7. Easy Virtue - with Jessica Biel and Kristen Scott Thomas *****
8. Pride and Glory - with Edward Norton and Colin Farrel *****
9. Che, Part I - a Steven Soderbergh film with Benicio del Torro ****
10. Zack and Miri Make a Porno - a Kevin Smith film with Seth Rogen *****
11. Il y a Longtemps que Je'Taime - with Kristin Scott Thomas ****
12. Slumdog Millionaire - a Danny Boyle film (kicking ass since 1994!) (Trainspotting) *****
13. Gomorrah **
14. The Wrestler - a Darren Aronofsky film with Mickey Rourke ****

My TIFF08 Experience, By the Numbers
$225: 10-ticket package + 4 additional movies purchased as singles
$64.97: Snacks at 7 of the 14 films (excluding turkey sand hastily scarfed down between shows at Varsity and apple found at bottom of purse)
$21.97: Visine, Tums, moist face towelettes to wipe crust out of eyes, and 79 cent bottle of water
$3.09: Small Diet Coke at ScotiaBank Place
125: # of minutes spent standing in line to a) pick up booklet and order form, b) drop off order form and c) pick up tickets
56: # of minutes spent watching commercials for approved TIFF sponsors and TIFF produced promo
7: # of times I traded tickets after hearing how crappy "that" movie was

To see all my TIFF pictures, click here.

Don't Try This at Home - the Story of TIFF 08

Brutal. The only word in the English language that even remotely describes the ticketing process for the Toronto International Film Festival. Much blood, sweat and tears go into snagging tickets to the highly sought after, and sometimes even lowly sought after, films that are invited to TIFF. I wholly recognize that Toronto is the only film festival in the world that allows the public to attend, but for the love of God, there has got to be a better way to make this miserably difficult process easier for everyone! If this doesn't change soon, the blister popping on my normally perfectly pedicured feet will never end from the 3 hour waits in line. This is the "people's festival" after all and a large part of its success is because the buyers and distributors want to see how a film plays with an audience of real people. Not plastic Hollywood types. So why is the process so f-ing difficult to get an actual ticket?!

I was determined not to repeat the mistake I made last year when I purchased 10 single movie tickets for $220+ when I could have purchased a ticket package for tens of dollars less. TIFF ticket purchasing is really a needlessly convoluted process so for those of you who have nothing else to do with the next 8 minutes of your life, stay tuned for a layperson's description of said process.

Unless you've signed up to receive TIFF alerts, you likely won't know what happens when, which I learned last year the hard way. I subsequently - and smartly - signed up for their emails and presto! - received the first of many in mid-May. First, you figure out how many movies you want to see, whether you want to pair up with someone else to share, etc, etc. There are packages available from a 50 movie pack down to single tickets. It's almost singularly impossible to schedule and physically get to 5 movies per day for 10 days in Toronto. Think about it. Ouch. You'd seriously need one of those blow up rings people with hemorrhoids sit on just to make it through the day. I settled on 15 tickets - a 10 ticket package and 5 single tickets. TIFF changed the process this year and no longer allowed package holders to schedule Gala screenings or Visa Screening Room films. They are their own separate packages and of course, expensive as hell. However, if you are a stargazer/fucker, this is definitely the package for you.

In early August, you are notified of the date when you can queue up at one location in downtown Toronto to pick up your official film schedule and 2 scantron-like forms that you manually complete. Said date this year was Monday, August 26. Said location was Toronto Life Square - TIFF's new home at Yonge/Dundas Square. Schedules were available only from 10 am to 6pm. Sigh. They really make you work for this. I managed to pick up my forms fairly quickly and went to get dinner to peruse the films. (As an aside, Johnny Rockets just opened up at Toronto Life Square so I decided to have a burger at the schmaltzy 50's joint. Interestingly, halfway through my meal, a 50's song came on and the entire staff - including the chefs - did a full on dance to "Stop! In the Name of Love". Oh, and they made a ketchup happy face on my hamburger. Aww.)
This year, the scan-tron request forms had to be turned in by Friday, August 30. Unluckily for me, I was going on holiday to Quebec City so had to return mine by Wednesday, August 28, giving me just 2 short days to read through 310 film synopses and make a schedule for 30 films (15 first choice, 15 second choice). Trust me, this is no small feat. There is some pre-festival blogging about certain movies but for the most part, my strategy was to get tickets only to movies that I felt wouldn't be readily available in theatres. After 8 long hours, I was ready to turn my selections in. I trudged *back* up to Toronto Life Square (if I was a gambling woman, I'd say that the TTC gets some kind of cut from the 10,000 Torontonians making 3 trips to TLS for TIFF) I thought it would only take 5 minutes to turn in my form, but alas, the line just to *turn in* the scantron was an hour long. Sigh.

Finally, everything was turned in and I got my "box number". This is the most important part of the TIFF ticketing process. I am sure that Torontonians everywhere get down on their knees at night praying that they get a good box number. Mine? Lucky #16. Once everyone has turned in their forms, TIFF draws a number at random and that's the box they begin processing ticket requests first. This year, they drew #9, so i essentially got all of my first choice since I was in box #16. Afterwards, I heard that there were over 150 boxes of envelopes this year, so I definitely lucked out.

On Monday, September 1 (Labour Day), you could begin picking up your tickets, buy single movie tickets and exchange for other films. Needless to say, the lines were again excruciatingly long. I know I've made light of the lines, but part of the fun of TIFF is actually standing in line and getting to know the people around you. People talk about what they're seeing or what they've heard is good, and the camaraderie is way cool. But after two hours of standing there, it gets old. The entire process is done manually so when you get up there, you give them your pick up ticket and they go through cardboard boxes by last name to find your envelope.

With tickets finally in hand, I did a little jig and headed home, thrilled and very much looking forward to TIFF08!

My So-Called Former Idol has Lost It

Apparently Madonna's new Sticky & Sweet tour opens with a bit comparing John MccCin to Hitler and Barack Obama to John Lennon. Seriously? The man was a POW for 5 years for Christ sake. I hardly think that's worthy of being compared to Hitler regardless of whether you like the guy or not.

Today, she paid tribute to Pope Benedict at her concert in Rome. If I had to guess, I'd say that he was likely unflattered by the dedication.

What the hell is wrong with her? Has she done one too many downward dog poses? Is her Kabbalah string tied too tightly?

I am personally overwhelmed by the plethora of celebrities and wannabe-celebrities spouting off their political views about what a retard George Dubya is. Yes, I'm from Texas, so I have a slight affection for the guy, but I can still admit when we've made a mistake. And we have - big time. Still, though, I think it's a travesty that idiot Englishmen who've been in rehab for sex addiction and who showed up at work the day after 9/11 in an Osama Bin Laden costume can call the leader of the free world a "retarded cowboy" and not get even a little flak.

What are you gonna do, though? I'll still be shelling out my $250 for a nose-bleed ticket to Madonna's concert. Go ahead - call me a sell out. I won't disagree.

TIFF-tastic Voyage

Toronto International Film Festival 08 is here. Finally. I've been waiting with bated breath since I realized what chaotic fun TIFF is upon my arrival in the great white north last summer. Cinephiles, star-fucker-ophiles, and bullshit-ophiles have all arrived for North America's largest - and clearly best - film festival. Even if you cloned yourself 10 times over, you still could not participate in everything the festival has to offer. For starters, 312 films - 249 features and 63 shorts - over 10 days. Let's say it's a bit akin to the olympics for film lovers and I'm planning to win a gold medal.

I'll blog as much as I can during TIFF to keep you - and me - up to date on the goings-on around Toronto and the festival.

Let the games begin!

The Highway of Heroes

There are many uniquely Canadian things that surely go unappreciated in the States. For example: the concept of poutine (gravy on fries?), Royal Canadian Mounties (hot!), expertly paved roads and although they hate it, niceness beyond compare. However, there is one thing uniquely Canadian that I recently had the pleasure of traveling down. It's called the Highway of Heroes.

What is the Highway of Heroes, you ask? Highway 401, or "the 401" as it's colloquially known here, is the I-10 equivalent in Canada that runs across the country, coast to coast and is also allegedly North America's busiest freeway. The 401 runs from Canadian Force Base (CFB) Trenton into Toronto and is routinely lined with civilians and veterans as the body of each fallen Canadian soldier killed in Afghanistan makes its way home during repatriation. The families of the soldiers are taken by limousine along the route as citizens pay their respects to the soldiers. Sadly, I've seen the Highway of Heroes in action three times since I moved here. In fact, it seems to be such a moving experience that NBC News recently ran a feature on it during their Veterans/Remembrance Day coverage.

It's not often that you witness something for the first time and find yourself being moved to tears. Recently, on a snowy winter evening, I was driving home on the Don Valley Parkway and noticed that people were standing along the sides with flags and people all over the bridges. There were firetrucks with firemen standing atop saluting and ambulances with paramedics doing the same. They were on every single bridge — every one. Being the "girl about town" photographer I like to pretend I am, I quickly grabbed my camera, steered with my knees and took as many pics as I could without crashing into my fellow drivers. Of course, only one turned out clearly, but you get the gist.

It's a grassroots phenomenon that takes place and has just grown among ordinary people; I find it fascinating. The kind of unified and public show of respect along the repatriation route is unusual in the world today. As far as I know, it doesn't happen in the States; it doesn't happen in the United Kingdom. And I think that's what so fascinating — the fact that none of it was organized by anyone except, perhaps, by each person's own heart to go and do it.

One of the plethora of reasons I love Canada. Lest we forget.

Let's Go to the Movies

Not unlike our gas prices, the penalties for DVD piracy are apparently going up. I recently rented an older DVD ("Network", to be precise) and because my DVD player was manufactured circa 1995, I was unable to forward through the obligatory federal notices about illegal copying prior to the beginning of the film. Parked on my sofa with my extra large sweet iced tea, I happened to notice that the penalty for piracy on said page was $250,000 and went on about my movie watching. Last week, I rented "Gone Baby Gone" (most twisted movie plot I've ever experienced - Ben must have learned a thing or two from the whole J.Lo debacle after all) and noticed that the penalty for piracy this time was $260,000. So here's my take: if $250,000 didn't dissuade you from illegally burning those copies of "Dan in Real Life" for your buddies at the gym, would $260,000? The point here is, shop for the best rates before you illegally copy dvd's. You could save yourself 10G's.

Although there finally look to be some great flicks out (and a long time coming, I might add) I am for some reason mentally unable to get myself to the actual movies theatre. My litmus test these days is whether I really want to shell out $13 for a movie, plus another $5 for an extra-small coke watered down with too much ice. Standing at the concession stand, my face always gives me away. Says the 12 year old working behind the counter, "only $2 more for the gallon big gulp size, ma'am (ma'am?!). And you get a free refill, too". As if my bladder can possibly retain 72 gallons of liquid in a two hour time span at this age. What i'm saying is that $18 for one person to spend on a movie is about as steep as the Cliff Hanger game on the "Price is Right" and believe me, I hum that little theme song all the way to theatre #12. Don't they realize I could have not 2, but 3, glasses of decent red wine at my local watering hole for that amount? At least I'd get a buzz from that 9 times out of 10.

Money notwithstanding, I believe my real issue is one of control. While Canadian audiences are FAR more respectful than American audiences are with regards to being quiet and not talking or answering their phone during movies, I have no control over when the kid behind me who snuck in to see the R rated movie and who constantly kicks my chair is going to loudly scarf down his popcorn and yell over to his friend "what did he say?". I can neither spread out in my pajamas under my favorite blanket nor hit rewind when I inevitably fall asleep for 15 minutes during the movie as I'm known to do. I'm not saying I'll never go to the movies again - far from it. I thoroughly enjoyed "Juno" when I saw it and while I wasn't necessarily convinced that 16 year olds today are anywhere near as witty as the character was written, I also know that a movie about a 29 year old pregnant woman who smokes a pipe could pass as a documentary on being a grandmother in Alabama...and I'm bettin' nobody would fork over 18 bucks for that one.

How I Know It's Spring

two words: open patios.

Why People Live in Canada

i have a prescription that i have filled each month. when i went into the pharmacy to reorder it, as i had silly-ly thrown away the label the month prior, the pharmacist asked if i wanted to get more than one at a time. of course, i said absolutely! who can be bothered with walking 2 blocks to the drugstore once a month? time value of money, after all.

i went to pick up the prescriptions today and paid $2 for 3 months' supply of a brand name drug. you do the math. the annual cost is $8. i was paying $15 a month in the states, or $180 a year. oh, when you think about it, i'm def paying the same amount for the drug, if not more, through the exorbitantly high taxes i pay. as a matter of fact, gas is currently $5.24 a gallon, which i may have mentioned a time or two. i'm still in electroshock therapy from it though and my therapist has told me that talking and journaling about the excess is the only way to remedy it. but i digress. still, i'm a very happy girl when i pick up a 3 month supply of something for $2. i skipped away like a giddy schoolgirl on the last day of class - "you're the one that i want...ooh, ooh, ooh, honey."

$8 for a one year supply of drugs. this is why people live in canada.

Swap Shop and Such

i've just discovered the most peculiar television show. it's called "Swap Shop" and it's on a local toronto channel on saturday and sunday mornings. it's essentially a live craig's list on television. a televised craig's list you ask? wait, it gets better. people call in from all over the gta (that's thet "greater toronto area" for those of you who don't have the privilege of living through 7' of snow during the lovely winter months) and try to sell their shit. most of the time, the hosts who are about 12 and just got out of junior high for summer break, can barely contain themselves. all kinds of people call in and part of the fun is really listening to their sad little stories about where they acquired their "item" and why they want to sell it. imagine "antiques roadshow" full of country bumpkins whose most recent technology purchase is their brita water filter. but i digress. this sunday, a man called in to sell his collection of - wait for it - "beverly hillbillies" VHS TAPES. for $300! no, i do not kid. he informed the public that he bought them over the course of 2 years and paid over $800 retail. this, my friends, is a show that simply cannot be missed. this is the reason i relocated to canada - quality television programming. http://www.rogerstelevision.com/option.asp?lid=12&rid=16&sid=264

in other news, it seems the canadians know more about the US presidential election than we do. i thought a fight was actually going to break out at my office today over who will get the democratic nom - obama or hillary. i thought to myself "9 out of 10 americans, no wait - 10 out of 10 americans likely could not name the canadian prime minister and yet my esteemed colleagues, who are canadian i might remind you, were asking each other "well, are you democrat or republican?". it's a wacky world out there.

in parting - have you all heard the news? i may potentially be having a life altering experience this summer. george michael is going on tour. i know - once you pick yourself up off the floor from the sheer excitement, get to the horn immediately and buy your tickets. careless whisper? freedom '90? all live? i can already feel the pitter patter of my heart.

No She Didn't

i'm not a fan of "the bachelor" but as i was sitting here blogging, i happened to have the show on. seriously.

so the new hunky british bachelor (who is rumoured to have recently been seen out with a bachelorette who was not one of his bachelorettes on the show - naughty, naughty) just told one chick "you're handling this all really well. you're really taking this all in stride" and i kid you not, without skipping a beat, the girl giggled sheepishly and said "hee hee, what does that mean?".

insert jaw dropping and eye bulging here.

Stop Whining About Gas Prices!

news in canada isn't as negative as in the u.s. and is what i normally watch. my only dose of U.S. news is from nbc nightly news which i watch on a fairly regular basis. without fail, the price of gas is mentioned almost daily and i just laugh. we have no idea how good we have it in the u.s. where gas prices are concerned. gas here went up to $1.08 per litre this week and for those of you who can do the math on the non-English system, there are 4 litres to a gallon, so we're paying $4.32 a gallon for regular gasoline. except for older cars, most cars require premium gasoline which is $1.28 per litre here. yes, your math is right. that's $5.12 per gallon. so the next time you go the pump, just think of your friends north of the border and stop whining about gas prices - we've got it good down there.


what you may notice from the photo below is the red tax sticker on the pump. for those of you who haven't yet had your lasik surgery, it reads "Taxes included in in Gasoline Prices in Ontario: 5% GST (sales tax), 10 cents per litre Federal Excise Tax, 14.7 cents per litre Provincial Gasoline Tax". that's over $1 per gallon just in taxes. we may have that in the states and i've just never noticed it. or more likely, they just don't have to post it. all i know is that they do not joke about their taxes here.





it's still cold today. it's -4C or 24F today with the windchill. and it's almost april. geebus.

i had a yummy brunch today at mitzi's cafe on queen west and sorauren. i had to wait about 25 minutes for a table for 1, but it was well worth it! ( http://www.mitzissister.com/cafe.html - i can only find a web site for its sister property, aptly named "mitzi's sister") i had english breakfast tea with cream and sugar (my usual), scrambled eggs with artichokes, roasted cherry tomatoes and grated fresh romano cheese, potatoes and the best toast i've ever had. they are well known for their oatmeal buttermilk pancakes but i couldn't really eat two whole breakfasts, so i asked for a half portion just to try the pancakes. boy, was that worth it. they were oatmeal buttermilk pancakes with poached port pears and whipped cream on top served with hot, fresh maple syrup. it was badass!! go there if/when you come to t.o.

lastly, i found a new drink i just love! it's an italian brand of peach iced tea called santal. it's a little glass figure 8 shaped bottle and they have many different flavours. it's about 100 times better than snapple peach iced tea - as a matter of fact, there's really no comparison. if you find any, definitely try it because it's fabulous! (http://www.parmalat.it/prodotti/santal/index.htm) p.s. darren, they have lemon iced tea, too :o). i found it at an italian gourmet food store in little italy here, but i bet either central market or cost plus world markets carries it in houston. fingers crossed they do!

Earth Hour

tonight was earth hour organized by the world wildlife fund and t.o. was part of this year's celebration ( http://www.wwf.ca/earthhour/canada.html ). it was amazing. i saw shops today with handmade signs in their window that said things like "parkdale powers down for the earth" and "toronto celebrates earth hour". i so love toronto. they are so progressive and really care about the environment even though they're not really the ones who are polluting the earth (that would be the americans).

sure enough, i happened to log onto google.com at 8:05 and their screen was black. it said "We've turned the lights out. Now it's your turn - Earth Hour." so i looked out my window and sure enough, the city was almost completely dark. i saw people turning off their lights in my building and it almost brought a tear to my eye. we can make a difference!! yes!

there were candlelit walks all over the city, restaurants hosting dinners by candelight, and "earth hour" parties everywhere.

some fun facts about earth hour 2008 in canada:

- 170 cities participated across the country
- canada made up 1/3 of earth hour participants around the world
- by turning off the lights for the hour, 7% of the electricity that would have been used from the grid was saved.
- 1,500,000 homes are estimated to have participated in ontario alone (i was one of them)
- nelly furtado gave a free concert at toronto city hall for earth hour

what a great event - i hope houston will try to participate next year!

The Last Few Weeks...March 22

it's easter weekend and the first easter that i haven't spent with my family in quite some time. my weekend kicked off early with a trip to the "one of a kind show" in t.o. on thursday, a gigantic show at the direct energy centre full of canadian artists and artisans selling their wares (http://www.oneofakindshow.com/indexT.php ). i was in heaven. i took transit over and thought i'd only stay a couple of hours. 5 hours later, i had barely made it through the first 3/4 of the show! what amazing artists there are out there. i'm always so impressed at what people think of and actualize. it makes me want to quit my job and figure out something good to sell. i would love to go around from show to show meeting cool people and seeing cool things. i made my list of things i wanted to think about and decided to think on it.

everything is closed in toronto on holidays still so there wasn't much to do on good friday. (as a matter of fact, the toronto city council recently voted against a proposal to allow businesses to open on statutory, or "stat" holidays here. old skool.) when i woke up, i decided to go to the imax theatre here to see "hurricane on the bayou" ( http://www.hurricaneonthebayou.com/ )at the ontario science center (http://www.ontariosciencecentre.ca/ ). i decided to take the ttc and it only took about 45 minutes! i took the streetcar to the subway to the bus...and it dropped me off right at the science centre...awesome! i was so happy. what a colossal mistake to go on good friday, though. there were about 970,000 screaming children and parents and the line to get into the imax was as long as a football field. once we got in, a little kid with a plastic coke bottle sat next to me and popped the empty bottle in and out the entire time. why do parents not say anything to their kids anymore? my dad would have broken my hands off for doing that. the movie was good but i was glad it was over. i hightailed it back downtown and ordered a cheese pizza from pizza rustica for good friday dinner and popped in "michael clayton".



on saturday, i decided i would go back to the "one of a kind show" to buy my choices and then go to high park for a stroll. yeah, right. i managed to spend another 4 hours at the show and another $400. that place is dangerous. and, everyone tells me the christmas show is double the size. wow. lots of talented people in canada! surprisingly, many of the exhibitors were from quebec and there was a ton of french being spoken. i just love that, although i have no clue what they're saying. it's such a pretty language. anyway, i bought some gold filagree earrings from a jewelry maker from t.o., 2 freshwater pearl bracelets from a jewelry designer from winnipeg, a a kari lynn bianchi armband that i love ( http://www.karilynnbianchi.com/armbands.php ), a really cute handmade purse from prickly pear ( http://www.pricklypear.biz/ ) and some cool "buddha bowls" that were on oprah's favorite things list last year from the artist who lives in b.c. ( http://flavourdesign.com/portfolio.php ). i spent way too much, but i wouldn't be able to get these things once i leave t.o. actually, i could have spent a lot more! needless to say, i didn't make it to high park and just ended up on queen west.

on easter sunday, i woke up and decided to go eat brunch early to beat the crowds. in my quest to eat brunch at as many of toronto's plethora of brunch places, i decided to eat at easy restaurant on queen west and roncesvalles ( http://easybreakfast.ca/ ). i had the huevos divorciados which was okay, but i probably wouldn't go back. it started to get really crowded by the time i left, too. i ended my easter sunday by lounging on my sofa and enjoying the beautifully sunny day.

The Last Few Weeks...March 29

the last few weeks have been fantastic in t.o. (note: toronto is referred to as "t.o." for short and never "the t.o." as did diablo cody). while spring is taking its sweet time getting here, we are all willing it to get here sooner rather than later by shunning our overworn fur lined winter hats and cashmere scarves in favor of spring coats and wellies sans socks.

today wasw one of those days where i was annoyed at living in canada. although i love the people here, what they say about them can be very true - they even joke about it themselves - they can be so laissez faire and bland and accepting about everything and it can really get to you, especially when you grow up in the States. an article came out this week from the university of british columbia about costs at airports around the world. pearson international (toronto's airport) came in top for fees compared to any airport in the entire world. it's true, too. when you fly in or out, you will pay a minimum of $100 in just airport taxes and sadly, you feel trapped here sometimes. there have been many weekends where i've wanted to fly out, but it really is just so expensive that you just stay put. i truly belive this is why most torontonians have never left ontario - it's just too damn expensive. so when i was sharing this story with some of my co-workers, they were just like "oh well" and "well, i heard vancouver was expensive, too". i'm like "no, this study was for every airport around the world and you guys just accept that you're being completely and totally gouged by your airport?" and they just say yes. it's been shocking to me how accepting canadians (and ontarians, more specifically since this is where i live) can be of everything that comes their way. when the government raises their taxes, they interview people on tv who are like "well, we understand that you have to maintain the level of service, so if they have to raise taxes, it's okay". are you kidding me? nothing might change in the states, but at least we protest and get pissed off like crazy! they literally told me "well, carmen, it's just how things have always been here and we just accept it". those are really the times where i truly feel like i'm from a totally different culture, and we are very different in many ways. that being said, with that "blandness" comes a niceness and caring people that is rare to find in the states anymore, in my opinion. i really love them, but it can be frustrating sometimes.


my weekend started off as usual by making my regular friday-after-work trip to walmart. unfortunately, i was already annoyed by the very slow drivers in the left lane on the don valley parkwway (left lane slow driving here is an epidemic of gargantuan proportions) as well as the parking lot that was eglinton ave. i finally made it to walmart and had to endure a higher volume of carts than i have become accustomed. people leaving their carts in the center of the aisle to search the campbell's soup display for the chicken consomme fueled my complete loss of patience. the wheel of my old ladies grocery cart kept falling off while trying to lug my groceries in but lo and behold, i finally made it. in an effort to have a fun weekend, i had invited one of my co-workers over to watch movies in the theatre at my building. tj came over with soda, popcorn and pretzels for our movie bonanza, while i contributed pizza and bruschetta from pizza rustica. we had a great picnic and watched "gone baby gone" (great flick, although a bit depressing). we started "superbad" but it was just that - superbad. about an hour in, i could watch no more so we called it a night. that one will definitely not make my top 10. as a matter of fact, i think it will definitely make my bottom 10 instead. total guy flick.


i slept late this morning and decided to play the day by ear. i finally got myself up and dressed and left around 1pm. i returned my movies to queen video - that store is so awesome - and jumped on the streetcar heading west on queen. i was thinking i would hit roncesvalles again, but decided to stay on to see where it would take me. after over an hour on the streetcar because of traffic on queen and the sheer length of the route, i jumped off at the humber river loop and turned around. i passed high park and its still frozen lake, brand new townhomes on windermere and the queensway that i'm sure i couldn't afford and some good photo ops that i jumped off for along the way. i got some more good shots of the streetcar cables at roncesvalles and the queensway but other than that, didn't see any good ones. i got off at ossington to do a little exploring and by this time, it was 2:50pm. i happened by a store called "camera" ( http://www.camerabar.ca/ ) and noticed a sign in the window offering free documentary screenings on saturdays at 3pm. i thought "what luck" and "this would never happen in houston" and headed in. what a great place. i have been looking for a photography place like this since i got here. it's attached to a photography gallery that was warm and inviting. there was a little cafe with a bar and nibbles. the entrance to camera had a fire in the fireplace and some beautiful photos. the screening room was nearly empty but right at 3pm, the documentary began. it was called Pictures From A Revolution from 1991. it was good, but with 30 minutes to go, i thought, as i usually do in movies, "oh, i'll just close my eyes for a minute" and 30 minutes later, the lights came up. i have no idea why i fall asleep in almost every single movie i see, but i have surely lost money on that game! i just hope i wasn't snoring.


after i left camera, i went to the lens gallery to see a photography exhibit on peru by stephen moretti. i picked up a cake at the red tea box and headed to terroni on queen for dinner. it was already packed and i picked a spot at the bar. i ordered the ssame thing as last time - the tagliatelle with bolognese sauce - which i love and the warm flourless chocolate cake for dessert. i also ordered peach iced tea and was delighted by the italian tea they gave me called santal. it was the best iced tea i've ever had! i chatted with the people around me about poetry and traveling and headed home. it was especially cold today although with the sun out, i didn't think it would be, so i left my hat and gloves at home. big mistake. i was so cold that my ears started to burn. sigh. and it's almost april.

Places I've Eaten in Toronto

in no particular order....

1. Urban


2. Boba


3. Epicure


4. Steak


5. Jack Astor's


6. Baton Rouge


7. Swiss Chalet


8. Crush Wine Bar


9. Red Tomato


10. Montana


11. Peter Pan


12. Red Tea Box


13. Saigon Sisters


14. Bierbistro


15. Joe Maggiano's


16. Hemingway's


17. Cafe Nervosa


18. Tony Balloni's
19. Jamie Kennedy on Church Street


20. Jamie Kennedy at the Gardiner


21. Toba


22. Le Petit Dejuner


23. Pizza Rustica


24. Gandhi Roti


25. Ci Vediamo


26. Six Steps


27. Cora's


28. Cafe Crepe


29. Sushi Extra


30. Hot House Cafe


31. Thai Basil


32. Thai Princess


33. Chippy's


34. Jump


35. Quesada


36. Bier Market


37. Jules


38. Old Spaghetti Factory


39. Spring Rolls


40. Bonjour Brioche


41. Toast


42. Sassafraz


43. The Drake Hotel


44. The Keg


45. Sashimi House


46. Craft Burger


47. Oliver and Bonancini


48. Terroni - Adelaide
49. Terroni - Queen West


50. Teriyaki


51. Strada


52. Rosewater Supper Club


53. Annona


54. Milestone's


55. Brassaii


56. Irish Embassy


57. Boom Breakfast Co.


58. The Foggy Dew


59. Milagro


60. Cantine


61. The Rosedale Diner


62. Pizziolo
63. Easy Restaurant
64. The Real Jerk
65. Kalendar
66. Tomi-Kro
67. Citizen
68. Shanghai Cowgirl
69. Mitzi's Cafe
70. Flo's Diner
71. Terroni Queen
72. Poor John's Cafe

and my favorites so far?

Terroni

Rosewater Supper Club

Jamie Kennedy at the Gardiner

Kalendar

Yes, Virginia...It's Still Snowing

it's March 8 and still snowing. i'm trying to make the best of it, but i think the "Seasonal Mood Disorder" is kicking in, therefore, i decided to spend my weekend eating at a few of the restaurants on my list and get a nice massage while i was at it. it started snowing on friday afternoon around 2pm and it didn't stop until saturday night around midnight. we got 30 cm of snow in two waves and it was close to putting us over the all time snow record for one winter from 1938-9 of 207.4 cm. ottawa has gotten 410 cm - wow! on friday, i ate at milagro on john street (http://www.milagrorestaurant.com/). it was my first foray into mexican food in canada and it was actually quite good, although one of the other texans here hated it. maybe i was just really craving it, i dunno. i had enchiladas and rice with plantains. their salsa and chips were fabulous - the salsa was very citrusy and fresh. afterwards, i went to see "be kind, rewind". i fell asleep, of course, and was ready to leave early but because the theatres here are so quiet, i felt i couldn't. when i left the theatre around 11:30pm, it was still snowing very hard and yet people were still queued up outside the clubs in their halter dresses, heels, nary a coat to be found and standing in 12" of snow. they must really need to get their dance on!

when i woke up saturday morning, it was still snowing - phase 2 apparently of the storm. i decided to snuggle up and stay in for a while - i had breakfast, watched TV, and napped. around 1pm, i headed out and decided to go to queen street east to see a different part of the city in the snow. i thought i'd head to riverdale park. when i got to queen street, it was a mess. snow everywhere and cars sliding around. the snow ploughs were coming down so the streetcars were slow. the ploughs are cool! if i lived here and could have any job i wanted, i'd totally be either a streetcar driver or a snow plough driver. when there are cars blocking their path, the ploughs lift up one of their "arms" and leave the piles of snow around that car basically blocking it in - it's great fun! i got off at broadview and walked east looking for the park. i never found it and because i didn't have my map, never realized that it's actually on the danforth and not queen east. i passed by a chocolate shop i'd seen on breakfast television called "ambiance chocolat" (http://www.ambiancechocolat.ca/). i went in and picked up some truffles - my favorite was the milk chocolate caramle with fleur de sel - and some valrhona hot chocolate. yummy on a snowy day. the truffles were only $0.85 each - cheap by toronto standards. as i was standing in the shop, 3 streetcars passed in a row so i knew i was in trouble and wasn't going to be able to catch one back. sure enough, i didn't see one so i walked around the Leslieville neighborhood for a bit. i passed moss park and there were several people out, even in the blowing snow. many of them were playing frisbee with their dogs who were clearly loving the snow, romping and rolling around. after 20 minutes of waiting, i finally caught a streetcar back down king street. everything looked like it was wearing a little white hat! i was headed to my massage appointment at campden spa (http://www.camdenspa.com/) and just thought i'd get there a little early. i got there at 3:30pm for a 4pm appointment, had some green tea and warmed up. they took me at 3:45pm - which is why i love showing up early! - and had a great 90 minute massage. i've been taking pilates and really feel stronger from it. i think it's something i'd like to stick with. after my massage, i thought i'd grab some dinner before i went home so i waited for the king streetcar. it took a while because the tracks were covered in snow and the streetcars were moving very slowly. one finally came and i headed to "the foggy dew" at king west and niagara street (http://www.thefoggydew.ca/). i picked a room with a tv and no one in it so i could eat, but i think i got really bad service because there was no one else in with me. i had the chicken pot pie, which was fierce!, and a pint. it started snowing even harder and the winds were gusting up to 60 clicks. when i was done, it took a while to catch the streetcar back home. there was a crazy guy chatting everyone up - he said he was from north bay and it was like he'd never met a stranger. no matter who or what, he was shaking everyone's hand and asking them what they did. people were staring at him like he was nuts - no one is that friendly in the big city, after all! i watched some "arrested development", changed my clocks forward and called it a night.

sunday morning was gloriously beautiful!! the sun was shining brightly, the skies were bright blue and everything was covered in thick, white snow. i decided to try a new brunch place and a new part of T.O. I'd not been to - College Street. I caught the streetcar up spadina and then west on college, and went to boom breakfast company (http://www.boombreakfast.com/). i got a spot at the bar right away. it was a nice place with good service. i ordered the "tuscan eggs" and they were delish!! i had my standard english breakfast tea and was off! i decided to walk down college street and had a great time. the snow, though, was so white and bright, that, along with the sun, almost blinded me. i don't carry sunglasses because i haven't needed them in 5 months, but i definitely could have used them today. my first stop was a home store called "ziggy's on college" - very cute things. i bought a card and some funny party cups with noses on them. then, i went into a used dvd store. they were having a "this winter sucks 30% off all DVD's" sale, so i went in and got 3 DVD's - knocked up, broadcast news and an out of print version of "a clockwork orange". total impulse buys - it must have been the nice weather. then, i stopped in a used bookstore called "she said boom" (http://www.shesaidboom.ca/) and got 5 books. it's one of the things i love most about toronto - because it's a walking city with great weather, you can just walk through neighborhoods you've never been to before and find these little gems of a store that would be "destination points" in any other city. i love happening upon random stores and finding fun things.

i finally headed home and decided to build a snowman with the thick snow on my balcony. it wasn't too bad, but the snow wasn't really packing snow so i had to add some water to make the balls. i used chocolate chips for the eyes and broken matchsticks for the nose and arms. my first and only toronto snowman!

Day 1:

Day 3: